Game Play
Turn Phases
1. What is the simplest way to determine which actions belong in the Action Phase and
what is done in the Buy Phase?
a. Anything that involves spending resources is part of the Buy Phase. Everything else is an
action in the Action Phase.
2. If I start buying things, does this end my Action Phase?
a.
Yes.
Travelling
1. What is the purpose of allowing a character unit to travel twice?
a. It has two purposes: charging ahead to aggressively get closer to an opponent or key
area of a map, and running away from a dangerous opponent and/or monster.
2. Why is this the only action that can be taken twice in a turn by the same character
unit?
a.
Other actions, if allowed to be repeated, would have such a broad statistical spread in
result that the game tempo and balance would be drastically affected, as well as the
luck/skill balance would be pushed more in favour of luck VS skill. We care very much
about this balance so that new players have a chance, but experienced players’ more
advanced choices still make a difference in outcome!
Harvesting
1. On my first turn in a Free-for-All match, can I choose to harvest 1 resource instead of
rolling? I hate rolling 4s!
a. Absolutely. Taking one-at-a-time is worse on average than rolling, but it is safe and
guaranteed. Many strategic choices in Stratos involve this kind of tradeoff – risk VS
security – and it’s up to you to choose wisely in each situation!
2.
What do you recommend for a faster start than one Peasant?
a.
We have always intended the Free-for-All maps to be introductory scenarios. For a
faster, more statistically even start, we recommend beginning with two Peasants per
player (starting on a Prairie and Forest, respectively), plus one randomly-selected
resource, as shown in the Peasants’ Delight scenario that can be easily adapted to more
than 2 players: https://www.stratosgame.com/peasants-delight.html
Defending
1. What counts as a “character action that would reduce another unit’s health”?
a. Attacking, Shooting, and Casting damage-inflicting Spells are all actions whose damage
is reduced by taking the Defend Action. Damage caused by Traps and Calamities is not
reduced by defending, since those events are not attacks by a character.
2. What is the point of Sturdy Defend?
a.
Soldiers are more skilled at defending against physical attacks than anyone else, i.e.
physically sturdier. Likewise, Mages are spiritually sturdier than other characters and
are thus more skilled at defending against magical attacks.
3. When exactly do the +1 Defense bonuses apply for the Soldier and Mage?
a.
They apply when your character unit has taken the Defend action, and remain active
until you begin your next turn.
Retraining Peasants
1. If you're training a Peasant who only has 1 health point left, and you decide to turn
him into a Mage, does he die?
a.
YES – retraining cannot restore health, as stated on page 7 of the Instruction Manual.
2. When you're retraining a Peasant to another character, do you get a defend token
with that new character?
a.
NO - unless that Peasant was already defending, in which case the defend token stays.
Promotions
1. Can you start with an upgraded character when you're hiring someone for twice the
purchase price? or must it only be the starting version of that class of character?
a.
YES - you can hire then promote right away.
Explorers and Searching
1. When you explore, does the explored tile stay flipped for the rest of the game (cannot
be explored again) or is it replaced by a fresh, face down tile of the same type?
a.
The tile stays flipped, and cannot be explored for the rest of the game ... Unless a Mage
casts the Transform spell on that tile, which replaces it with a fresh tile of any type!
2. Why are some tiles blank instead of having a zero on the bottom?
a.
Exploration is meant to be challenging – if you don’t pay attention to your surroundings,
you could get lost and end up searching the same area all over again!
Mages and Casting Spells
1. If you have no Mages on the board and you purchase your very first Mage at the end
of your turn during the Buy Phase, can you then immediately buy multiple spells
during that Buy Phase?
a.
YES – you can buy as many spells as you can afford.
2. If your only Mage dies, do you lose the Prosperity Points for the played spell cards
because you'd have to recover the spell book to get those spells back?
a.
NO - spells remain face-up and points remain after you earn them. Players have asked
about causing others to lose points but we feel it’s unpleasant to lose points!
Physical Components and Shipping
1. How do I fit everything back into the box?
a. See our setup guide here: https://www.stratosgame.com/setup-and-put-away.html
2. Why are there two extra blank equipment tokens?
a.
These are there in case you lose one of your tokens, or want to make your own!
3. I lost the instructions and/or tutorial. Can you send me a new one?
a. Definitely. We printed extra just in case. You can start by downloading the PDF for now,
and when you email us at [email protected] with your shipping address (and
phone number for USA customers), we’ll ship you a new instruction manual free of
charge. The rules and tutorial PDFs are here: https://www.stratosgame.com/play.html
4. I lost some pieces and/or my dog ate them. Can you send me new ones?
a.
5.
Absolutely. As with the instruction manual and tutorial, we also made extra just in case.
Email us at [email protected] and we’ll send you what you need – again, free of
charge.
How do you handle shipping to PO Boxes?
a.
We ship by Canada Post Expedited Parcel, which delivers to all Canadian PO Boxes and,
in partnership with USPS, delivers to all USA PO Boxes as well. If you order online and
prefer to change your delivery address to a non-PO Box address anyway, just email us
right away and we’ll ship to your preferred address.
Release and Availability
1. Will there be expansions for Stratos?
a. Absolutely. We are very excited to make new content and would love to have fan input
on what our player community would like to see. In addition, we are developing new
scenario maps and posting them on our website so you can get even more play out of
the core game. See here: https://www.stratosgame.com/maps.html
2. Do you have a distributor?
a.
While we have been approached by distributors, we are proceeding with selfdistribution for now. We appreciate the friendly local game stores who order directly
from us because it allows us a more direct connection with our player base.
Special Thanks
To all of our players who have contributed to this FAQ by asking us questions – thank you!!
We appreciate your contributions and thank you for helping to improve the play experience of others.